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Jackson voters to speak on indoor pool issue The aquatic center would include a competition pool as well as a leisure pool (pictured) complete with splash pad, therapy pool and nets for both basketball and volleyball. ClarkNexsen rendering
BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER ike voters across the country, Jackson County residents are electing representatives for offices ranging from congressman to commissioner, but this fall they’ll decide a more tangible question as well — whether or not the county should borrow $20 million to build a new aquatic center in Cullowhee. “Shall the order authorizing Jackson County general obligation bonds in the max-
October 7-13, 2020
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imum amount of $20,000,000 plus interest to pay capital costs of providing indoor pool facilities and paying related costs, and providing that additional taxes may be levied in an amount sufficient to pay the principal and interest on the bonds, as adopted by the County’s Board of Commissioners on July 10, 2020, be approved?” asks the referendum question printed on the ballot. Voters can then chose one of two simple answers: yes or no. A yes is a vote to borrow
the money and build the pool, and a no is a vote not to borrow the money and to go without a pool. General obligation bonds are typically the least costly financing option available for potential bond projects, and the bond referendum gives voters the power to authorize the government to raise funds through the sale of general obligation bonds. Once the bonds are paid off, the tax associated with the bond goes away.
THE PLAN While Sylva has an outdoor pool and Western Carolina University makes its indoor pool available for some uses, Jackson County residents have long clamored for an indoor swimming pool all their own, with 86.4 percent of 638 survey respondents in a 2013 recreation master plan update saying that a centrally located indoor swimming pool is “important” or “very important.” A follow-up survey in 2019 saw 93.7 percent of 1,709 people say they would support an indoor pool, with 68 percent saying they’d support such a project even if it meant raising taxes. However, those surveys polled a limited number of people, and they were distributed at county rec centers — among other locations and methods — so it’s possible that the response rate was greater among people who were more likely to be favorable to the pool question. The ballot will serve as the ultimate survey on the issue. Bringing the question to the ballot has cost the county $55,500, including $37,900 for the Asheville-based firm ClarkNexsen to develop architectural plans and cost estimates, $2,600 for geotechnical work from Wood Engineering, $7,500 for the bond attorney fee and $7,500 for education marketing materials. ClarkNexsen’s design calls for a 30,800square-foot two-pool complex added to the
S EE I NDOOR POOL, PAGE 12
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